HSBC is reportedly planning to cut thousands of jobs due to AI. According to a report by Bloomberg, the change – likely to span over the next three to five years – could affect about 10% or nearly 20,000 of its workforce. “HSBC Holdings Plc is weighing deep job cuts over the coming years as Chief Executive Officer Georges Elhedery bets on AI to shrink its middle and back offices,” the report said, quoting unnamed sources. Since taking the role in 2024, Elhedery has previously carried out a radical restructuring of the lender, reducing thousands of jobs, while selling some businesses and merging or closing others. The report comes days after HSBC’s chief financial officer, Pam Kaur, said that the bank saw opportunities to use AI both to cut costs and increase employee productivity. Speaking at a Morgan Stanley conference, Kaur said that HSBC may incorporate AI into areas such as customer service centers, in addition to know-your-customer teams and transaction monitoring to make its operations more cost efficient.
HSBC layoffs : Who all may be impacted
One of the people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg that non-client facing roles in global service centers are among those expected to be most impacted by the job cuts at HSBC. The assessment is at an early stage, the source added. According to it, the talks about AI-driven layoffs started before the recent war in the Middle East broke out. So far, no final decision has been made, it added.The review also includes roles where HSBC may not replace employees, the report said. Some job cuts may also happen through business sales or exits, one of the sources told the publication. The bank had around 210,000 employees at the end of 2025.
Global banks to eliminate around 2,00,000 jobs
As per the Bloomberg Intelligence report, leading banks across the world may reduce jobs as high as 2 lakh in the coming three to five years. The BI report surveyed chief information and technology officers and indicated that on average they expect a net 3% workforce reduction.
